College governance must play a key role in the AI revolution

Colleges need to implement robust oversight over the use of AI to effectively lead in this revolution

Colleges need to implement robust oversight over the use of AI to effectively lead in this revolution

2 Feb 2025, 7:52

As the prime minister highlighted in his speech last week, AI is already transforming our lives. The technology is unequivocally changing the way businesses operate across all sectors. Not ‘in the future’, but right now.

A definition of AI (by AI!) is: “The study of how computers may learn and behave intelligently, such as by solving problems and picking up new skills.”

There is clear alignment here with what we do, and deliver, in the FE sector. Colleges equip people with new skills, help them to solve problems and then apply this knowledge to the real world of work.

The fact FE appears to be ahead of the curve on AI is therefore no surprise. As this huge, technological juggernaut races towards us all, many colleges are embracing it, recognising its potential to improve provision and better prepare students for the future.

As Hull College demonstrated at its fantastic AI conference, this technology is shaping the future of teaching, learning and career preparation.

But managing and using these new technologies safely and ethically is a significant task – of which much responsibility is falling to governing boards. Governors need to be forward-thinking with a willingness to accept change. They need to recognise AI’s benefits to teaching staff in terms of reducing workload for example, yet have an acute awareness of the risks, such as data protection, cybersecurity and equality.

AI is enabling us to do things in a very different way right across the business. In terms of governance it is already helping us to streamline administrative tasks, such as generating meeting minutes and actions.

More widely, AI provides the capability to analyse huge rafts of data quickly. This can be incredibly helpful, helping colleges tailor provision and courses very specifically, which could help close achievement gaps.

However, this interaction between systems will create a complex web of data sharing, which will impact data protection and heighten cybersecurity risks.

And here is where AI ethics comes in, which for me is the most significant challenge for college governance – and indeed for leaders across all industries.

AI ethics issues range from data responsibility and privacy, to trust and inclusion. How will data be collected and used? And how can we ensure AI will support social mobility and not exacerbate inequalities through lack of access?

Accountability is also key. For example, if a college uses chatbots to speak to students and the wrong advice is provided, who is ultimately responsible?

There is also the potential for bias and/or discrimination. AI bias can occur due to human biases skewing an algorithm (or the original data) that an AI system uses to make decisions.

In an FE setting, this could lead to learners being inadvertently disadvantaged if the systems making ‘decisions’ about their progression pathways (for example) or forecasting their performance, have inbuilt bias.

Boards should consider the following:

  • Setting up an ethics committee to focus on the issues arising from AI rollouts. This could be an additional function of the audit and risk committee, or curriculum and standards committee. The checks and balances governors provide must extend to the use and implementation of AI – ensuring compliance within set frameworks, the monitoring of risks and fair access for all.
  • Understand, quantify and address risks around data protection and cybersecurity. Data privacy policies, access controls and data minimisation are all needed to protect people’s privacy and colleges’ digital infrastructure. Governors need to understand the risks and ensure safety measures are being taken.
  • Being aware of how AI is being used across areas of the business via reporting frameworks from college leadership teams. What tools are being introduced for staff/students, at what cost and with what support? Knowing this will enable governors to consider the impact of AI on the college community, in terms of wellbeing and efficiency. It will also provide the necessary level of accountability in all areas – whether that’s within finance, curriculum or communications.

The government has set a clear ambition for the UK to lead the AI revolution. Colleges can be at the forefront of this – but governing boards have a key role to play in ensuring ethical standards are upheld.

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One comment

  1. Steve Hewitt

    Not to sound like a stuck record on this but

    “More widely, AI provides the capability to analyse huge rafts of data quickly. This can be incredibly helpful, helping colleges tailor provision and courses very specifically, which could help close achievement gaps.”

    Colleges, even the largest, Just Do Not Have “huge rafts of data” that would be better analysed by whatever “AI” means in this context. Machine Learning *can* do this with millions of records but there’s no meaningful dataset that is that large in an individual college (or even college group). All of the boosterism about “AI” misses the point that this just isn’t a thing that can happen. Throughout the (dreadfully illustrated, but that’s another point) Hello Future report, amongst the concrete examples of teachers making lesson plans more quickly (but whose intellectual property has been stolen to create them?) there was *so* much handwaving about back office functions being improved without a single example of one that is actually in operation.

    The emperor is naked (and also a thief and an environmental disaster).